International Ensemble Modern Academy

The International Ensemble Modern Academy (IEMA) was founded in 2003 as Ensemble Modern’s training centre, in order to convey the numerous artistic movements of our times as well as an open, creative manner of dealing with artistic processes. It offers education programmes for various target groups, ranging from education projects to international master courses for instrumentalists to formats for young artists at the beginning of their professional careers. Starting in 2022, IEMA, in cooperation with Ensemble Modern, initiated the new mentoring programme International Composer & Conductor Seminars (ICCS) and the Young Ensemble Academy. Furthermore, IEMA considers itself a platform for various formats of discourse. Thus, in 2018 it initiated the Meersburg Concert Conversations together with Hans Zender and the City of Meersburg, a format featuring public rehearsals, lectures and concerts. From 2021 onwards a new master class, the Hans Zender Academy, completes these offerings. In 2019 IEMA hosted a symposium on developments in the current music ensemble landscape; in 2022 a symposium on musical and artistic education in times of changing professional fields.

The main focus, however, is on the one-year Master’s programme, offered since 2006 in cooperation with the Frankfurt University of Music and Performing Arts (HfMDK). Every year of fellows forms its own IEMA Ensemble. The students of different disciplines (instrumentalists, sound directors, conductors and composers) work with members of Ensemble Modern and renowned composer and conductor personalities on contemporary repertoire for one year. The results of this work are presented by the IEMA Ensemble of the current year in 20 concerts per year, performed in Germany and abroad. More than 280 graduates have been able to take advantage of this study programme, which is unique throughout the world.